47. Jeremy Goldberg

Jeremy Goldberg has represented countless defendants in countless cases since first joining Legal Aid Society of Nassau County in 1988. One client and case, however, has remained a constant for the past 20 years: Ronald Bower, a Queens father of two who was convicted of heinous sex crimes an ever-growing number of law enforcement officials ranging from the NYS Department of Corrections and state Inspector General’s Office to the FBI and state Attorney General’s Office believe he did not commit. To put it mildly, it has been an utterly draining, exhaustive and frustrating ordeal, rife with legal setbacks, perplexing judicial rulings, and even disappearing potentially name-clearing DNA evidence. Released on parole this June following more than 23 years of incarceration, it is nothing short of a miracle Bower is even still alive. Goldberg is standing up for a man who the majority of society, without knowing the facts behind his plight, would rather simply rot in prison, disappear, go away, die. A lesser person would have given up decades ago. But not Goldberg. Despite great sacrifice, including his own personal tragedies throughout the years, Goldberg has persevered, relentless in his quest for what so many believe to be the truth. Currently the head of the Society’s appeals bureau, Goldberg has made reversing this gross “miscarriage of justice,” as he refers to it, his obligation as an attorney, vowing never to rest until Bower’s been 100-percent exonerated. “As long as I’m alive, I’ll be trying to get that done,” he told the Press in 2011. “That’s a fact. That’s no hyperbole. I will, always. Because the bottom line is, that it’s easier for me to keep fighting than to walk away and live with it, without fighting.” For his selfless persistence, tireless commitment and dedication to the truth against immeasurable odds and adversity, Goldberg deserves recognition. He belongs on this list.